Only few thousand participated in demonstrations over Imran's arrest, says Rana Sanaullah

Federal Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah claimed on Saturday that only a few thousand people participated in protests across the country after Imran Khan’s arrest, adding Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers who attacked public properties and military installations will be brought to justice, Aaj News reported.

Following the arrest of PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Tuesday, protests erupted throughout Pakistan that transformed into violence. Hundreds of protesters blocked highways and main entry, and exit routes to all major cities, attacking and burning state buildings, police, and public vehicles and rampaged through army installations.

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad today, the interior minister said PPP and PML-N were engaged in bitter political disputes in the past, but no one ever attacked the homes of each other.

“What is politics in burning down the memorials of martyrs and setting fire to defense buildings?" he asked.

Providing details of the number of PTI protesters, he said protests only looted shops and public properties.

Sanaullah said on May 9 demonstrations were held at 12 places in the federal capital and up to 700 people participated in these protests.

Only between 15,000 and 1800, people protested at 221 locations in Punjab which has a population of 115 million, he said.

The interior minister said protests were held at 126 places in KP and around 22,000 protesters participated.

Talking about May 11, he said protests were held at 4 places in the federal capital, 12 places in Punjab, and 39 places in KP.

"There were about 7-8 thousand people in these demonstrations," he claimed.

He said in the country of 230 million people only around 45,000 people came out to protest against Khan’s arrest.

Sanaullah said that Imran Khan was arrested by the NAB in a case that involved plunder of the national exchequer because Rs60 billion.

Sanaullah said only miscreants and gangs were supporting Imran Khan, not the entire nation.

The interior minister said the government may consider banning PTI as it was the only option left after the recent attacks.

The development comes hours after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif gave a 72-hour deadline to law-enforcement authorities to arrest planners, attackers, and instigators of violence that was seen in Pakistan over the past few days.

Speaking at the Punjab Safe Cities Authority following his visit to the Lahore Corps Commander's house, he said: “We will create an example out of the miscreants who vandalised and attacked state institutions so that such an incident never takes place in Pakistan again”.

Nearly 2,000 people have been arrested and at least eight have been killed since Tuesday, as per Reuters.